Legion World Forums LEGION COMPANION Dr. Gym'll's Cultural Rarities Thor, the God of Thunder

Olivier's Thor is getting a Marvel Select figure:

I like Coipel's design, but it seems kinda wrong to me to see Thor in armor. He's always been tough enough not to need it (well, except for that time he was cursed of course...)

...cursed with the breakable bones, or that godawful beard...?

#4's out-- with a story partially set in Darfur (sp?) which tries a *tad* too hard to be relevant. The elder's refusal of Thor & co.'s aid seems like something that would happen only in a work of fiction. I can't imagine someone really turning down a *god's* assistance to quell tragedy.

That said, the story was moving-- and I appreciated Thor's Solomon-like solution.

I'm glad the Warriors Three are introduced en masse, rather than drug out over 12 issues or something.

There's a hint that Asgard may be filling up at a much quicker pace, but who knows what that really means or when it'll happen.

We *do* know that Sif is most likely the next Asgardian to appear. After her, I'm pulling for Balder and then Valkyrie.

After that, the missing 'big Asgardians' (Freya, Hela, Loki etc.) can fill up the city.

I wonder about the frost giants, trolls, elves, sentient wolves that surrounded Asgard? Where are they?

I don't think folksy Oklahomans are a substitute, frankly.

It *wasn't* Sif, after all! I was surprised at the brunette's identity... I won't spoil it, but I will say that I don't think it's a character that'll be a romantic interest for the God of Thunder any time soon.

Balder's back-- after time spent inhabiting The Destroyer's armor-- which was also surprising.

The same deal that brought about the cover character's return brought back a bevy of Asgardian 'baddies', who are now around to battle the Thunder god. And Dr. Doom's hand is stirring a pot or two. That can't be good (except possibly for readers).

I still wanna see Sif and Valkyrie! The DEFENDERS announcement has me wanting to see these two even more!

Weird how the Asgardians scattered anonymously (and amnesiac?) among the U.S. population is happening at the same time that the same thing is happening with Amazons at DC...

They're not amnesiac and barely anonymous - all those Thor wakes up get full recall (and most of them aren't Asgardians - the four shown were Hela, a Frost Giant, Amora and the eye of what I presume to be Jormungand, with Hela & Amora in full costume and the others not exactly humanoid). I really want to know why Amora - the only one I consider to be an "Asgardian" of the four - ran away, actually. Last we saw, she was on good terms with Thor, and unlike Balder, she died well before Thor did anything in Ragnarok (she was the very first death when Loki attacked on Hela's ship).

I fully expect Sif to turn up inside Jane Foster - she's the only Asgardian who's been bonded to a mortal before where that mortal's still around. And given the reappearance of a Donald Blake...

Yuck. I hope not, Reboot. I always found Jane kind of boring.

I was thinking of *all* the Asgardians, not just those shown in #5. I think the 'better-natured' Asgardians who we've seen so far have been amnesiac, so it's probable that those who haven't debuted are also without memory.

Amora-- I'd like to see her return to her roots as a prime Marvel villainess. Other than her, there isn't one, really. Is there?

Most of the Asgardians are now "freed" from their hosts - Asgard is visibly populated in the opening scene, and there were tens or more people in the shelter that Thor freed various nasties from (the four we saw are an excerpt, a sample, not everyone). Sif - who Heimdall and by extension Thor can't find yet - and Odin - who JMS says Thor isn't sure whether he should try and find - are about the only major Thor-book Asgardians still missing.

I only mean that the Asgardians were or are (in a few cases, still) anonymously scattered around without memory (before 'awakening' or whatever), just like the Amazons were at the end of AMAZONS ATTACK, this past summer. Concurrently with THOR. The Amazons, as yet, haven't come to themselves.

Fat chance of that happening with the aforementioned brunette in the spotlight.

Moonstone.

Selene.

Dr. Monica "Scorpion's Mom" Rappaccini

Hela.

Madame Masque.

Viper.

Nebula could've been one if not for Starlin and Marz.

Umar has potential that's been unexplored for decades.

Dr. Minerva, if anyone at Marvel would write her like I do.

Why wouldst thou want me in the Marvel Universe when thou doth already have me here at Legion World?

"It is my hope to be the first Asgardian with a tan." Hee-hee!

Worth the price of the issue, IMO.

The stuff with the Asgardians rubbing shoulders with Oklahomans is fun. Thor's speech about wanting the Asgardians to live lives that they choose, rather than that they are fated for makes this juxtaposition more palatable. He says this as he's debating with Dr. Blake about whether or not to find and restore Odin, who Thor thinks will follow old paths.

I liked this conversation. Blake's thought, that an Asgardian in human form might be killed in a random car wreck before Thor acts spurs the Thunder God to take to the heavens and kill a bunck of birds with one lightning strike. He plummets to earth (lot of that happening in this series), while Loki looks on and makes cryptic comments.

Well, I like each scene- and the Norse gods interacting with Americans is richer fodder than I first thought. I can't help thinking that it won't last all that long, though.

It's fun to imagine how prolonged exposure would change both the Oklahomans and the Asgardians. How long till all the elfs, frost giants, sentient wolves, fairies, etc. start to set up camp around Asgard? They're on Earth, too, aren't they? Or did I misunderstand that?

Still- bring on some Sif and Valkyrie!

I've got to say, despite just about nothing happening yet, I've kind of enjoyed the last few issues.

I'm still on the fence, but its entertaining enough for me to keep reading.

When I read all the Thor's a few years ago, I remember the whole 'Sif inside Jane Foster a la Thor in Don Blake' thing. I think Reboot could be on to something and they might go that route again. Obviously, Don Blake is not Thor, which is a major change in the last thirty years. Since midway through the Silver Age (when Kirby was still there) to another point in the 70's, Siminson doing away with it in the 80's and then even in the 90's, they've reiterated time and time again that Odin created Blake in a way where he was essentially Thor or an aspect of Thor. Now this is not the case. And so, if Thor has Sif, I think they might let Don Blake have Jane. In a way, it could please almost all Thor fans (for example, my father, a child of the Marvel Silver Age, prefers Jane Foster far beyond Sif).

My biggest worry was the way JMS might right some of the Oklahoma folks. So far, my worries seem to be for naught. I'll probably make about eight trips to OKC this year for business (I made about 12 last year).

Thorsleep? Already? A god-based father-son allegory concerning Odin's relationship with his father replayed in the Thor/Odin dynamic?

Interesting... but not what I wanted this issue.

Still, the art was nice- and the issue was generally well-written.

I wonder if Thor will bring Odin back after all?

If he doesn't, I hope the ravens hang around. They're kind of fun and creepy.

Anyone think the latest issue was actually an essay on comic books, the status quo and change? I felt it was, specifically Odin's speech to Thor and Thor breaking the cycle. And I think it was fairly brillantly done (without beating us over the head).

I think this might be the best issue yet, though I'm hard pressed to figure out why. I think JMS has hit his pace--its not a fast-paced book, but things are happening each issue and I'm feeling satisfied at issue's end.

I actually really like Jane Foster and Don Blake together (where, say, I don't like Jane & Thor), and I like the idea of a long-term build to their eventual return to a relationship.

Sif plot is a good twist.

I really liked Odin and Thor's scenes.

#9-- Wonderful art, I thought. Particularly the scenes set in Asgard and in the snowy Rocky Mountains.

Loved the Warriors three here-- their personalites shone through, I thought.

Loki is suitably sinister and manipulative-- though the gender change is still a head-scratcher for me. What does it really contribute to the story? Wouldn't Karnilla have been a better choice for the role Loki plays here?

Thor being a bit big brother-ish plays right into Loki's hands.

Leading to the big revelation-- or bigger lie-- whichever it is.

Balder's next few appearances will be very revealing, either way.

Fun to see Frost Giants-- though it brings up some MU type questions. If Frost Giants, and others Asgardian monster-types by extension, are roaming the Earth, wouldn't they be causing all sorts of chaos? I'm glad the peripheral peoples have been resurrected along with the Asgardians, but having them *all* on Earth with few consequences is hard to swallow.

#10-- I'm surprised that the Balder-as-full-brother thing was revealed so quickly.

That's good, but of course it's just the first turn in Loki's twisted plan, whatever it is.

I wonder what part the boy at the end will play in it?

#11-- I'm a little tired of Balder being manipulated by Loki.

Has Balder the Brave always had an owl as his signifier? Odin had the ravens... where's Thor's winged buddy?

Pages two and three contain an absolutely stunning visual whose impact is slashed by intruding panels. If you didn't consider the contents of the main image, it's an interesting layout, but part of what makes layout effective is balancing the contents of the smaller panels with the 'main' image.

The main image is that of some horned beast of burden bearing the court of Asgard, complete with canopy, half-naked maidens and bare-chested, helmed warriors standing guard. Panels along the left cut off a big part of the slope of the beast's back, obscuring just what that great animal's doing. Was Balder's owl so important here? The panel should've ended at the gutter, if not a few picas to its left.

There's a nice idea of the red canopy casting a red 'glow' across the faces of those within it in the smaller panels capturing their conversation. But the placement of the panels doesn't make the most of that idea.

Has a beast like this one who bears gods appeared before? How about a polar bear's head and fur used as a helm? Makes for a striking visual. Wonder what the Norse gods think of the dangers facing arctic animals...

A big chunk of the issue is comprised of a conversation between Thor and Steve Rogers' ghost, with Thor making a godly parting gesture of thanks and friendship. Nice scenes, though I just don't want to admit that the original Cap's really dead.

A friend loaned me # 10 and 11, which are the first issues of the current run that I've seen since # 1. I must say that I enjoyed them quite a bit.

Thor's conversation with Cap's spirit was deeply moving, particularly the exchange about Valhalla.

Olivier Coipel's art is simply astounding; he's come a long way since his Legion days. (I agree with Todd, though, that the two-page spread could have been more effective. I didn't even realize it was a two-page spread at first, which led me to think that a transitional scene was missing between the third and fourth panels on page two.)

I enjoy this more mature take and quieter build-up of stories in some Marvels these days. Something else else similar was done with Hulk and Daredevil a few years ago, although those arcs went on too long and ultimately lacked any real pay off. But there is something nice about a comic book story that doesn't have to rely on super-villains or artificial drama.

In fact, I didn't even miss the absence of "thee" and "thou" in the Asgardian dialogue.

Just read #11 and thought it was fantastic. The Thor/Cap scenes really moved me, but what I thought was especially moving was Don Blake's few words before he called down Thor. Well done.

This might be what I consider JMS's best work at Marvel. It definitely started off slow--and hasn't necessarily picked up--but its found its own pace, and that helps make it more unique.

Love that its on the most outer fringes of the MU (kudos to Marvel for allowing so many of its comics to be like that), loving the stylistic feel to the art, dialogue and pacing, and generally loving that JMS has telegraphed far in advance what Balder may do and then is playing against our expectations every step of the way, as Balder refuses to fall easily to Loki's tricks.

HWW, glad you're picking this up again.

Well, as I said, a friend loaned me # 10 and 11. Even though I enjoyed them, I doubt that I'll rush out to pick up # 12 and so on. But it's good to check in every now and then.

So, I read the Loki issue. Great stuff...really great, actually. Thor definitely has a 'slow burn' but I don't mind it. This is probably the best Thor has been since...oh, the early-mid 90's, if not all the way to the end of Simonsin's run.

Having Matt Fraction do Thor one-shots is kind of nice too, so when the main title runs late, we get some good Thor 'action' stories.

Man, I hated JMS so much on Spidey, but he seems to be doing a good job here. He always said it was editorial interference, so I'm glad I've given him a chance here.

The prospect of Asgard's natives moving to Latveria makes my suspension of disbelief waver. Asgard moving around (whether it's the city-on-a-rock or the community of Asgardians) just reminds me that the word 'Asgard' accounts for much, much more than a city's populace. Trolls, frost-giants, sentient wolves, fairies, elves, etc. Literal worlds of characters. All relocated to Earth? Somewhere else 'out there'?

I'm curious about all of that.

Which isn't at all what the story in the renumbered #601 is about.

It's about Loki and Balder, William and Kelda (very sweet story between those two), and Don Blake. I've always been fairly entertained by Loki and his mischief-making ways, but now- I pretty much want to see Thor kill him. After Sif is rescued and restored (if possible) and Loki's in some other body.

Was this all a convoluted way to keep the Thunder God and his goddess permanetly apart? 'Cause the idea of Thor physically loving the body that he at least sort of got used to calling his 'brother' is... nauseating. Members of godly pantheons have done worse, I suppose. At least Loki-in-Sif is Asgardian-human-ish. And not a swan or a bull or a tree.

I like each issue as they come out, but I'm quite impatient with the Sif situation. And where's Brunhilde? I love, love, love Peter David's take on her- but I'd like to see her among her hereditary peers for a storyline or two, as well.

In addition to the THOR monthly, Marvel has begun reprinting the old TALES OF ASGARD strip with updated colorization. A bad thing if you're talking about classic black and white movies, but a good thing when talking about older comic books.

At least in this case, it is.

I've read some of these here and there, but never all of them. I've said before, and no doubt will again, that I'm a big fan of the mythological stories in prose and in comic form. I'm predisposed to like these. Anyone who shares such a predisposition and doesn't own or hasn't read the originals from the 1960's will want to at least look through these.

Between these, the recent announcement of an INHUMANS masterwork and all the other reprints Marvel has been gracing us with (in Classic TPB, Essential or Masterwork form), they've really taken the lead from DC in the preservation of their past.

You know what? They've even been reprinting older stories alongside new ones... just like the era when I became a comics reader. It hooked me then-- I hope new readers of all ages are similarly engaged.

DC- follow their example. The time for resting on the laurels of the wonderful ARCHIVES and SHOWCASES is over.